Motor-driven spring adjusting device for vehicles



Aug. 7, 1956 F. K. H. NALLINGER MOTOR-DRIVEN SPRING-ADJUSTING DEVICE FOR VEHICLES Filed June 26, 1952 mm If/{Amman States PatetifO 2,769,525? I MOTOR-LDRIVEN SPRING-ADSUSTING DEVIE"*" FOR VEHICLES.

ftNalliiigeri, Stiittgaiig Germany; assigiior. V VD rBenz Aktieuges'elis'chaft, Stuttgart-Unitarturkhelm, G'ermanyj Applicatiomluneao,t19S2ySerial Ne. 295,792 1 1 9 ciniiisi Ci. 267 5-57) cut in or liell eVied Q f tensiqn'res'pecitively c Bot th /Pr ent i v n ion o;

' g device 0 the'type'indic'ated R i'qe iingdi a w h i sim n i t?- desa' t l pa 'ra It is another object of the' invention to "roy'ide a sp' 'ng j' I '1 switchn g into (meter the other" endposition by'ftheactioii ofia sptiag. 1 y

Fig Isa top plan vlew ofthe'swit ch; showiiimdnie 65 parts secti along 'alliiie'perpendiculai to'the' axis of shaft52 between.

Figure 6 s-afpatial' axi l cross-sectional view taken 70 "mammals 10' and 11 in Fig; 1 represent 10118101191 is is a crb ssse ictional' view or are Sara-1; area;

2" rods, for example; auxiliary; springs additional to the main spring system of a motor vehicle which arewattachcd to arms 12 and 13 abutting'against spindles 14 and 15. The spindles 1'4 and 15 are slidingly, but nonrotatably guided in a casing 16, and threadablyengage, thetinteiiorly threaded extended hub portions of a gear 19 by means of left-hand and right-hand threads 17 and 18respectively so that on rotationof the gear 19 in one directiomuthe spindles 14-and 15 willbe-displaced out; wardly; i., e., away fromigear 19, and on rotation ofthe' gear 19 in oppositedirection, the spindles 14"and:.15' will be displaced inwardly, i. e., toward gear 19.-- Thegear 19 is in;mesh withireduction gears20' driven by an electric motor 21 diagrammatically indicated 'on the, drawing, Therforegqing arrangement is substantially as shown, described and claimed in'the copen'ding patent: application, Serial; Number 282,589,- filedon April 16, 19 2, now Patent No.; 2,705,139," entitled, Spring-Adjusting Me ans for Vehicles.- Theelectric motor 2t= is; connccted to a source oi current ZZTt'nmu gh switches "23' and 24 which:w ill;be closed by ,coils 25' and 26' as-soon asp-the respective-pail is supplied; with electric current.;

Eqt c'tation :o fqcqil or windingflj induces the-motor 21 to; rqtate in forward direction of rotation and excitation ofi zia ;cqi 1; onwinding -28i to. rotate in backward di-i rectiqn of rotation. I p

In addit Ii -the spindle 1 5g-is-connectedto a'barvzfl Whichoapriesstops 3Q;;and 31'. lever 32 which may be atv ltma aki i m be d pl cdr o t or right from its centerposition thereby establishing; ant-electrical: circ between ipqwer supplyzl andcoil' ZSeonZG. by-

closuig co r tacts Briton-Q4 respectiwsly V I Howevei, lever 3 2 also-be actuated automatically by stops or 31, respectively When the spindles 14 andlireachpitheqtheip innermost positionwherebystop 311 will shift .the} lever 32, from; its positionin which it;

establishes a circuit; Ywithlconta ct 34, 01" their outermost;

positi n= whereby stop iflgwillrshiftthe-lever32from its; positioniin which establishes a circuit with contact 33.1 The approximate position of the stop members 30and1 31. the spindles l land t-liat-their, outermost-end posilii sare .-indigated; inldott ed; lines in; Figure 1 and arefldesignat edgfl", and 13 1", respectively.

The coils 25-Qand 2 6 are: further connected with comtacts firanc l 3fi ,w hich may (be; alternately connected by; means of the lever 38 of a toggle switoha38, 39 with thelwire leading (to, the ground." The'toggle switch is actuated -by stops located;on a gear 4flzwhich. will abutt'ngly; engage the; lever 39 and: displace the, same: beyondthegfdead ceuter position of a spring-41. Assoon as theispringA l has passedrthe 'dead center position of thellevers 38,139,;the 1ever38 of; the toggleswitch will be;

rap; y shifted. from; contact 35,t o contact 36 or con spindles lfl andtlst from the. o-load or. partial load end-'- position full: load endposition.

The method of operation not: the spring-adjusting device accordingtoFig. 1 is as follows: In the particu-t larposition showu onithe drawingsgthe torsionali springs 10 and 11 are adjustedito: lowesttension. is inv the median or center position' so thatsthecircuitconnecting the' coils 25"and 2"6 and therewith the motor 2'1""is'disc0nnected: If it is desired to"activate* or cut;

in the springs" 10: and 11 respectively to adjust them to their greatsttension," the lever. 32 wi11-"b eshifted tothe left 'whereby the" contact 33 will r be" connected with: the source of cur-rent 22. Since the toggle switch flis The lever "32 is in abutting engagement with the contact 35, the current may flow through the coil 25. As a result of this, the switch 23 will be closed so that the coil 27 will now be supplied with current from the source 22 through 23 and the electric motor 21 will be driven in forward direction of rotation. The gear 19 is set in motion and the spindles 14 and 15 respectively are displaced outwardly so that the torsional springs 10 and 11 are put under tension.

As soon as the springs have attained their ultimate tension, the lever 32 will be engaged by the stop 31 and shifted to its median or center position where it is held, for example, by a detent. 32 will be opened, the current flowing through the coil and exciting coil 27 respectively will be interrupted and the motor 21 stopped. Previously to that the stop 49 on the gear 40 has already engaged the lever 39 and shifted it, with respect to the lever 38, into the dead center position. As soon as it passes the dead center position. As soon as it passes the dead center position, which takes place simultaneously with the shifting of the lever 32 into the median position, the lever 38, by the action of the spring 41, will also be shifted into its other end-position in that it now abuts against the contact 36.

Should it be desired now to inactivate or cut out the torsional springs 10 and 11 respectively to relieve them of the tension it is merely necessary to shift the lever 32 to the right so that the current will flow from the source of current 22 through the contact 34, coil 26, and contact 36 to the ground 37. As a result, the switch 24 will be closed, the exciting coil 28 supplied with current, whereby the electric motor 21 will be caused to run in backward direction of rotation. As soon as the end position is reached the lever 32 will be returned by the stop to its median position, and the motor stopped. Simultaneously therewith the lever 39 will be returned and the lever 38 shifted into the position shown on the drawing.

Figures 2 through 6 show the constructional details of the toggle switch in accordance with the present invention referred to briefly in connection with the description of Figure 1, where the toggle switch was schematically indicated and designated by reference numerals 38 and 39.

The toggle switch rests in a housing, only a wall portion of which is shown in Figures 2, 5 and 6, where such wall portion is designated by reference numeral 57. The aforementioned gear 40 provided with stops 49 and 50 (Figures 2, 4 and 6) is mounted on a shaft 52 which extends up to the wall portion 57.

An intermediate plate 62 (Figures 2, 4 and 6), which is substantially parallel to the wall portion 57, is located between the gear 40 and the wall portion 57, and is fixedly connected with the latter by means of the brackets 64 (Figures 2, 4 and 5). A shaft 61 (Figures 2, 4, 5 and 6) is supported in the intermediate plate 62 above shaft 52 and parallel therewith. The lever 39 (Figures 2, 4 and 6) rests on shaft 61 and includes a central wedgeshaped extension 43 and wing-shaped stop or abutment members 47 and 48 (Figures 2 and 4). The stop or abutment members 47 and 48 extended outwardly from shaft 61, i. e., perpendicularly to the axial direction thereof, but are also displaced axially with respect to each other and thereby come to lie in the path of the stops 49 and 50 respectively of gear 40, which have different lengths, as best shown in Figure 4.

A slide member 46 (Figures 2, 4 and 6) is guided in its vertical movement by shafts 52 and 61 through appropriate slots or openings provided at both ends of the slide member 46, and is constantly urged upwardly by spring 45 which is fastened to the slide member 46 and to the intermediate plate 62. The slide member 46 carries a pin 44 which is directed toward the lever 39 and cooperates with the edges of the wedge-shaped extension 43. l

As a result thereof the switch The aforementioned parts cooperate in such a way that upon rotation of the gear in direction of the arrow p (Figure 2), the stop 49, after completing approximately one-quarter of a revolution, will abut against the projecting stop 47 of lever 39 and then attempts to swing the lever 39 in clockwise direction; the latter movement is, however, only possible when the pin 44 and slide member 46 are downwardly displaced by the wedgeshaped extension 43, against the action of the spring 45, to a point beyond the outer or lower extremity of the wedge-shaped extension 43. Continued application of the force by the wedge-shaped extension 43 against pin 44 will lower the pin 44 and slide member 46 against the spring pressure 45, and as soon as the pin 44 has reached the outer or lower extremity of the wedge-shaped extension 43, the lever 39 will be rapidly urged by the spring into the other end position as at that point the lever 39 and therewith the wedge-shaped extension 43 may continue freely the clockwise rotation. In a corresponding manner the stop 50, on rotation of the gear 40 in direction of the arrow p, may be brought into abutting engagement with the stop 48 so as to swing the lever 39 in counterclockwise direction. As clearly shown in Fig. 4 stop or abutment members 47 and 48 at the lever 39 are also displaced with respect to each other in the axial direction of the shaft 61, so that stop 49 will come in contact with stop 47 only, and stop 50 with stop 48 only.

A further vertical slide member 59 (Figures 4, 5 and 6), which is also guided in its vertical movement by shafts 52 and 61 through appropriate slots or openings provided at both ends of the slide member 59, is located behind the intermediate plate 62. The further slide member 59 is constantly urged upwardly by spring 63, which is fastened to the further slide member 59 and to the intermediate plate 62. The slide member 59 further carries a pin 60 (Figures 2, 4, 5 and 6) on the side thereof turned away from the intermediate plate 62, i. e., on the side thereof directed toward the wall portion 57.

Another shaft 51 (Figures 3, 4 and 6) coaxial with shaft 61 is mounted in wall portion 57 on which is mounted the lever 38 (Figures 1, 2, 4, 5, and 6) between the further slide member 59 and the wall portion 57. The shaft 51 projects through the wall portion 57, and a switch lever 58 is mounted on the thus projecting part of shaft 51 on the other side of wall portion 57.

The lever 38 includes a wedge-shaped extension at one (lower) end thereof, the edges of which cooperate with the pin 60 of slide member 59 in the same manner as the edges of the wedge-shaped extension 43 of the lever 39 with the pin 44 of the slide member 46.

The lever 39 is fork-shaped at the other (upper) end thereof and is provided thereat with two spaced stop members 54 and (Figures 2, 4 and 5) forming an opening therebetween.

The tongue 53 (Figures 2, 4, 5 and 6) which is provided at the upper end of lever 39 and which projects rearwardly, i. e., in the direction toward wall portion 57, in parallel relationship with shafts 51 and 61, extends into this opening between stop members 54 and 55 in such a manner as to cooperate with the one or the other stop member 54 or 55 to rotate the lever 38 in the one or other direction. Rotation of lever 38 produces corresponding rotation of shaft 51 and therewith rotation of switch lever 58 in the one or other direction.

. As soon as the lever 38 is swung so much that the point of its wedge-shaped extension slides over the pin 60 against the force of the tension spring 63, the lever 38 will be rapidly urged by the spring 63 to continue its movement so as to rotate shaft 51, until the switch lever 58 connected with the lever 38 reaches one of its end positions where it contacts the point 35 or 36 elastically. This contact continues until the tongue 53 of the lever 39 contacts the opposite stop of the lever 38 and forces the wedge-shaped point of the lever over the pin 60 of the slide 59"against the-resistance of the spring 63. After the pin 60 has passed the wedgeshaped point of the lever 38', this lever 38 snaps toward the other side and establishes the next contact bymeans of the. switch 1ever..58.-. Owing to this jerky snapping there occursano sparkingat thecontactsr Thelevers 38..and. was .well as the slides 46 and 59 are formedfromsheet metalwstamping, the stops 4'1, 48, 53, 54, 55 being produced by punching or bending. By mounting the levers and the slides closely side by side on the shafts 61 and 51 a short overall length of the switch is obtained.

As to the operation of the toggle switch in connection with the overall system, reference should be made to the foregoing description of Figure 1.

What I claim is:

1. A device for adjusting a spring system of a vehicle comprising a spring-adjusting member alternately movable from one end position to another for bracing a vehicle spring, an auxiliary motor, means for transmitting the motion of said auxiliary motor to said springadjusting member, means for initiating movement of said spring adjusting member and limit switch means for automatically interrupting the movement of said springadjusting member upon arrival of said spring-adjusting member at one of said end positions, and means for automatically preselecting the reversal of the rotation of said auxiliary motor, said preselecting means comprising a limitedly shiftable switch member having a center position between two contact positions, two contact members alternately in contact with said switch member upon displacement of said switch member to one or the other contact positions thereof, at least one resilient member co-operating with said switch member for non-positively moving said switch member into one or the other contact position to thereby cause said switch member to snap into the contact position after passing the said center position, and stop members moving with said transmitting means for shifting during movement thereof, said switch member into one or the other position past said center position.

2. A device for adjusting a spring system of a vehicle comprising a spring-adjusting member alternately movable from one end position to another for bracing a vehicle spring, an auxiliary motor, means for transmitting the motion of said auxiliary motor to said spring-adjusting member, and means for automatically preselecting reversal of the rotation of said auxiliary motor, said preselecting means comprising a limitedly shiftable switch member having a center position between two contact positions, two contact members alternately in contact with said switch member upon displacement by said switch member to the one or other cont-act positions, at least one resilient member co-operating with said switch member to snap said switch member into contact position after passing said center position, and stop members moving with said transmitting means for shifting during movement thereof said switch member into one or the other position past said center position.

3. The device as claimed in claim 2, wherein said means for automatically preselecting reversal further comprises a limitedly revolvable lever having a center position for moving said switch member, a rotatable disk carrying said stop members and in driven connection with said transmitting means, counter-stops on said lever co-operating with said stop members in such a way, that they will be carried along by said stop members to thereby swing said lever from one to the other end position.

4. The device asclaimed in claim 2, wherein said stop members are located in different planes of motion, and wherein said means for automatically preselecting reversal further comprises a limitedly revolvable lever provided with counter-stop members likewise located in different planes of motion, said counter-stop members and said step membersbe'ingso arranged with respect to- 'each other that the-plane of 'motion of one of said stop members will be in register with the planeof mo tion of "one of said counter-stop members so that each 5. A device for adjusting a spring system ofa vehicle comprising a spring-adjusting member forbracing a vehicle spring and alternately;movable. fromone endposi-t tion to the other, an auxiliary motor, means for transmitting the motion of said auxiliary motor to said springadjusting member, manual switch means for starting and stopping said auxiliary motor operative to energize said auxiliary motor upon closure thereof to rotate in only one predetermined direction of rotation, limit means for automatically operating said switch means when said spring-adjusting member has reached one or the other end position, and means allowing actuation of said motor only in one direction from a given position and for automatically preselecting the reversal of the direction of rotation of said auxiliary motor to enable subsequent rotation thereof only in the opposite direction of rotation from the prevailing direction of rotation, said limit means including means for actuating the preselecting means in response to the motion of said spring-adjusting member.

6. A device for adjusting a spring system of a vehicle comprising a spring-adjusting member, an electric motor, manual switch means for energizing and de-energizing said motor, a gearing between said electric motor and said spring-adjusting member, means operatively connected with said spring-adjusting member and said gearing allowing actuation of said motor only in one direction from a given position and for automatically preselecting the reversal of the direction of rotation of said electric motor only upon completion of the movement of said spring-adjusting member including means for actuating said preselecting means by said gearing, and

two stop members moving with said spring-adjusting member and cooperating with said switch means in response to travel by said spring-adjusting member to a predetermined position only to shift said switching means by one of said stop members whereby the excitation for said electric motor is cut out and preselection for operation in the opposite direction during the next energization is obtained.

7. A device for adjusting a spring system of a vehicle comprising spring-adjusting means alternately movable from one end position to another, driving means connected to said spring-adjusting means and adapted to alternately drive said spring-adjusting means into opposite directions, control means for initiating movement of said driving means and including means for automatically stopping said driving means upon arrival of said spring-adjusting member at one of said end positions, and further means allowing actuating of said driving means only in one direction from a given position and operative only upon arrival of said spring-adjusting member at one of said end positions for preconditioning said driving means to enable reversal of said driving means and thereby drive said spring-adjusting member thereupon only in the opposite direction during the succeeding engagement thereof until arrival of said spring-adjusting member at the other end position.

8. A device for adjusting a spring system of a vehicle comprising spring-adjusting means alternately movable from one end position to another, driving means connected to said spring-adjusting means for alternately driving said spring-adjusting means in either one of the two opposite directions until said spring-adjusting means reaches one of said end positions, means for starting said driving means including means for automatically stopping said driving means upon arrival of said spring-adjusting means at one of said end positions, and further means allowing movement of said driving means in only one direction from a given position and operative upon arrival of said spring-adjusting member at one of said end positions to precondition said driving means to drive said spring-adjusting member only in the opposite direction during the succeeding engagement of said driving means until said spring-adjusting means reaches the other end position.

9. The device claimed in claim 5, wherein said auxiliary motor is a reversible electric motor.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Gouge Apr. 26, Taber Aug. 28, Johnson Feb. 16, Krotz Feb. 20, Allison Aug. 19, 

